Mail-bag catcher.



No. 887,394. PATENTED MAY 12, 1908. J. P. HENDRIX.

MAIL BAG CATCHER.

APPLICATION FILED F3121. 1908.

Yaquimm Q I-GI I .nmm II J JOHN P. llllGNDltIX, OF Gl/ENCOE, KENIUUKY.

IVIAIL-BAG CATCHER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 12, 1908.

Application filed February 21. 1908. Serial No. 417,031.

T 0 all whom it may CO'TLCPWL.

Be it known that I, JOHN P. llnxnmx, a citizen of the United States, residing at Glow coe, in the county of Gallatin and State of Kentucky, have invented certain ne and useful Improvements in Mail-Bag Catchers, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawlngs.

My inventionrelates to improvements in mail bag catching devices and more particularly to those used on mail cars for piek ing up mail bags at the dill'erent stations.

The object of the invention is to providcn device of this character which may be readily set in an operative position to grab a suspended bag and which, when it catches the bag, will be automatically swung into the mail car to bring the bag within convenient reach of the mail clerk.

With the above and other objects in view, the invention consists of the novel features of construction and the combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter fully described and claimed, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure l is a vertical section through the door opening of a mail car, showing my improved mail bag catcher therein; Fig. 2 is a horizontal section taken on the plane indicated by the line 2-2 in Fig. 1; and Fig. 3 is a detail vertical section taken on the plane indicated by the line 3-3 in Fig. 1.

The invention is adapted to be arranged in the door opening 1 of a mail car or the like and may be mounted upon a support 2 of any suitable form and construction. It com,- prises a suitable mail bag catching device 3, preferably in the form of a horizontally disposed arm arranged on a vertical pivot or shaft 4, the upper and lower reduced ends of which are journaled for rotation in bearing brackets .5, 6 preferably of angular form and secured to the support 2 by means of screws or other fastenings 7. The arm 3 is thus mounted for swinging movement in a horizontal plane so that it may be swung out of the door opening to project at right angles to the car or into the car so that the mail bag caught by it may be conveniently removed by the clerk. As above stated, the arm or device 3 may be of any suitable form and construction and any suitable means may be provided upon it for picking up a .mail bag suspended adjacent to the track. The arm 3 is swung inwardly or retracted by a coil spring 8 connected atone of its ends to a radially projecting arm S) on the lower portion of the pivot or shaft 4 and at its opposite end to a lug or projection 10 upon the lower bracket or plate (3. The arms 3 and 9 are preferably disposed in planes substantially at ri ht angles to each other so that when the arm 3 swings into the door opening 1, the arm t) engages the bracket 6 and limits the inward swinging movement of said arm 3. The latter is adapted to be locked or retained in its operative positon, that is in a position at right angles to the side of the car, by a latch 11 in the form of a lever pivoted at 12 upon the upper bracket or plate 5 and having its other end formed with an oll'set finger 13 and a stop shoulder 14-. The latch lever 11 is actuated in an upward direction by a suitable spring 14 and its free end projects through and slides in a suitable slotted guide 15 depending from the upper bracket 5. The free end of the latch lever 11 is adapted to eo-act with a radially projecting lug 16 arranged upon the upper portion of the pivot or shaft 4.

In operation, the device is set by swinging the arm 3 outwardly, at right angles to the side of the car, then lowering the free end of the latch 11 and swinging the projection or lug 16 so that its inner face engages the shoulder 14 and its bottom face is engaged by the linger 13 on said. latch. hen the parts are in this position, as clearly shown in Fig. 1, the latch will retain the arm 3 in its operative position. then the latter picks up the bag the impact of the bag is such that it swings the arm 3 in a rearward direction a distance suilicient to move the lug 15 out of the path of the finger 13 so that the end of the latch lever is freed and its actuating spring 14L will then elevate it and raise the :linger 13 above the plane of said lug 16. As soon as the impact of the striking bag is overcome the arm 3 swings into the car so that the bag upon the latter is brought within convenient reach of the mail clerk. It will thus be seen that. after the device is set it is entirely automatic in its operation.

Having thus described my invention what I claim is:

1. In a mail bag catcher, the combination of a catching device or arm having a vertical pivot whereby it is mounted for horizontal swinging movement into and out of a car, a spring for actuating said arm inwardly, a projection upon the pivot of said arm, a pivoted latch lever having a shouldered end to engage said projection and a spring for actuating said latch lever.

2. A mail bag catcher comprising a sup port, bearings thereon, a mail bag catching arm having a vertical pivot arranged in said bearings, a radial armprojecting from said pivot, a coil spring having one end fixed and its other end connected to said radial arm, a

lug upon said pivot, a pivoted latch lever 10 having a shouldered end to engage said lug, and a spring for actuating said latch lever.

In testimony whereof I hereunto affix my signature in the presence of tWo Witnesses.

JOHN P. HENDRIX.

Vitnesses: JABE. M. ELLISTON, SAML C. JoNEs. 

